Mechanical Stimulation of Stem Cells in a Composite Scaffold Sheet for Tissue Engineering

Supervisor: Dr C Perrault

It is becoming increasingly clear that mechanical and other biophysical signals from the extracellular matrix (ECM) can powerfully influence a wide variety of fundamental cell behaviors, including proliferation, differentiation, death, and motility. Studies have shown that in vitro cell and tissue growth are enhanced in response to mechanical stimulation similar to normal physiologic conditions when compared to cells grown under the static conditions. However, the current approach to bone engineering involves the use of 3D scaffolds in which cells are seeded, stimulated and then removed for analysis. As a result, their location and forces to which they were submitted are unknown.

This project will use a single sheet of woven biomaterial as scaffold. As a result, direct visualization and characterization will be greatly improved, thus providing criticial information on biomechanics and tissue engineering.